Minnesota Now

On Minnesota Now you hear from DJs from across the state and from Minnesota artists featured in the Minnesota Music Minute.

Youa Vang is a freelance music, arts and culture journalist who has written for City Pages and the Minneapolis-St. Paul Magazine.

She joined host Cathy Wurzer to talk about the Midwest Music Festival in Winona later in April and other shows music fans should have on their radar.

The US hous passed a bill on April 1 to decriminalize marijuana at the federal level after Democrats made the case for allowing states to set their own pot policies. The bill is expected to be shut down by the Senate, but last week’s approval gave lawmakers the chance to voice their stance on decriminalization. That push appears to have broad support with voters across partisan lines all over the country. Here in Minnesota, medical marijuana is legal, but that Federal law banning it has been an issue for some who have a medical pot card but live on federal property. Sahan Journal reporter Joey Peters explored this issue in depth and he joined host Cathy Wurzer for a conversation about it.

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation. 

Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

As legend tells it, fur trader Pierre Parrant – nicknamed “Pig’s Eye” – was the first European resident in St. Paul.

But not everything you’ve heard about the history of St. Paul is true.  Matt Goff is an archivist and librarian. He recently did some digging into the story of Parrant for the Ramsey County Historical Society – and he says many of the stories told about Pig’s Eye for the past 200 years are just stories – not history. Host Cathy Wurzer spoke with Goff.

The face of Minnesota farming is changing: more women and more people of color are farming than ever. Moses Momanyi grew up in a farming community in Kenya. When he arrived to the US in 2004, he spent years learning American farming methods. A few years ago, he and his wife started their own certified organic farm in Cambridge, Minnesota. They also founded Kilimo Minnesota, a 3-5 year training program for farmers of African descent.

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation. Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.  

Avian flu continues to spread through Minnesota. The last outbreak of avian flu 7 years ago affected 9 million birds. Minnesota is the number one producer of turkeys in the country so many people are watching the situation closely. That includes MPR reporter Kirsti Marohn, who joined Cathy to give details about the spread.

Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation. Subscribe to the Minnesota Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.  

Two competing visions for what to do with Minnesota's $9.25 billion budget surplus emerged this week at the Minnesota Capitol.

Republicans in the state Senate want to use much of the money for a big income tax cut, including eliminating taxes on Social Security income.

Democrats in the House want targeted tax cuts and credits for the parents of young children, renters, and first-time homeowners. They also want to increase spending by more than $1 billion over the next few years on schools, far more than the Republican Senate’s school spending plan.

MPR News host Mike Mulcahy talked about the competing visions with two House leaders. Plus, politics reporters weighed in on what happened at the legislature.

Guests:

Minneapolis and St. Paul passed rent control measures last fall but some Minnesota lawmakers want to cancel them. We get an update on where things stand. Plus, are efforts to recruit more police officers working? We hear more reaction to the decision not to charge a Minneapolis police officer in the death of Amir Locke. Former Minnesota Twins pitching star LaTroy Hawkins traded his baseball mitt for an electric bike and isn’t looking back. They “why” behind that decision is a memorable story. And Cathy Wurzer talks sports with Wally Langfellow and Eric Nelson.

*Note - we can not air the full song of the day on our website or in the podcast version of the show for copywrite reasons.

The Twins open a day late, the weather favors their opponent and it’s tough to find the game on regular television. The Timberwolves are trying to get into the playoffs but a few games stand in their way. And NCAA hockey fans can gather to watch the Gophers at the Riverview Theatre in south Minneapolis.

St. Paul begins a public comment period on new proposed rules to enforce rent control in the city but GOP state senators are entertaining a measure that would nullify all local rent control ordinances — retroactive to November first of 2021. MPR reporter Matt Sepic talks with host Cathy Wurzer about where that leaves rent control initiatives in cities across the state.